This invention relates to a cabinet for housing electronic equipment.
In most telecommunications systems, it is necessary to house sophisticated electronic equipment outdoors in the vicinity of a group of subscribers. One example of such a cabinet is the remote terminal in a Subscriber Loop Carrier (SLC.RTM.) system. Another example is the distant terminal required in hybrid fiber coax systems which requires both narrowband and broadband electronic equipment.
A problem which must be addressed with such cabinets is how to most effectively cool the electronics. One approach is to provide fans in the cabinet in combination with a heat exchanger located near the equipment. (See U.S. Pat. No. 5,150,277 issued to Bainbridge et al.) While such an approach is effective, fans tend to add considerable expense to the cost of the cabinet. Thus, proposals have been made to rely on natural convection in combination with a heat exchanger and/or cooling fins, the cooling fins being provided in a ventilated portion of the cabinet. (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,386 issued to Frey Jr. et al., and Japanese Laid open Patent 1-253997 published Oct. 11, 1989 in the name of Kimura.)
It is desirable to provide a cabinet which efficiently and economically cools electronic components housed therein.